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past film screening and book release @ elephant Guan Rong Opening Sunday, December 11th, 2011 5pm － 9pm Screening at 6 pm, followed by book signing

Elephant is pleased to present a film screening and book release by Los Angeles based artist Guan Rong on Sunday, December 11th, 2011.

Opening 5pm － 9pm

Screening at 6 pm, followed by book signing.

Elephant is located at 3325 Division Street, Los Angeles, CA 90065

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100 unique book packages will be display in the gallery. The book sets are $100 per set. Cash and personal check are accepted.

The film is called Am I Not Here? Directed by Mike HJ Chang, a visual artist currently based in Singapore, and Guan Rong, it is an autobiographical documentary film about Guan Rong’s life in the U.S. as an artist and as a person in general. 50 min.

There are two books which come together with the film as a book set. Copyright‐Free, Bonnie is a collection of self-selected notes, writings, short stories, homework, and letters from 1997 to 2008 by Guan Rong. 145 pages. A Picture Book contains a number of collections of small drawings Guan did between 1999 to 2005, notes from two very important and influential classes she took while in college, and some selected images from her appointment books from 2000 to 2009. 78 pages.

There are 300 copies of the book in total. A unique package was made for each of the first 100 editions. Every package and every DVD case is made and hand-drawn differently by Guan Rong.

This project started in 2008, and was created in celebration of Guan Rong living in the U.S. for 10 years. Without chronological order, the writings and drawings are very much in flux. Giving herself an image as a wild-child, the books and film shows the artist’s love for everyday life in general. The packages she created are visually interesting. With 100 of them altogether, there is a feeling of overwhelming, psychological twisted but curious and fanatical.

Guan Rong’s art is something that happens throughout the day. When she drives around the city or writes a letter to someone, art is born in her. Art comes as an inspiration and is the fruit of Guan’s search for a mindful living. Sometimes people need to relook at a piece of art they have created because it takes them back to a wonderful experience. So a piece of art is a flower Guan offers to the world, and at the same time, it is a “bell of mindfulness” for herself to remember the presence of beauty in her daily life.